Microsoft is about to buy one of the best productivity apps in the world

Wunderlist for iPhone. Wunderlist Microsoft is close to buying Wunderlist, a to-do list app that lets you do everything from managing grocery lists to scheduling assignments for colleagues at work, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.

Wunderlist is one of my favorite apps. I've been using it for several months to keep myself on task for what I need to do each day, both at work (call sources, schedule meetings, write reviews) and in my personal life (pay rent, clean my apartment, call my mom). I'd be lost without it.

The app isn't just a simple list-making tool. You can share tasks and lists with other Wunderlist users. For example, if you share a grocery list with your spouse or roommate, he can add stuff to it from his app and it'll appear on your phone, too.

Recently, some of my colleagues started using Wunderlist to share and assign story ideas, and it's worked out really well. You can set due dates, manage tasks you've assigned, and add notes and other details for certain assignments. And it all updates in real time, so everyone is on the same page. It's already changed the way a lot of my colleagues and I collaborate.

Wunderlist tasks sync across all platforms. Wunderlist/YouTube Wunderlist would be the third major productivity app acquired by Microsoft within the past year. The Redmond, Washington-based tech company also bought the email app Acompli, which later relaunched as the new Outlook app for iPhone and Android. It also bought Sunrise, my favorite calendar app, which syncs with Google and other major calendar services.

Microsoft's acquisition strategy seems to be focused on popular productivity apps that run on all platforms, not just Windows devices. (Wunderlist is available for iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows.) The idea is to get users hooked on great apps and services made by Microsoft, with the hope those people will eventually make the jump to Windows computers, phones, and tablets.

It's working, too. Microsoft isn't just picking any old apps to acquire; it's picking the best.

Six months ago I had zero Microsoft apps on my home screen. I'll have three if and when the Wunderlist acquisition goes through.